BGMI

The most addictive and famous game, Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), is removed from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store after a Government order. Despite its disappearance from app stores, it will run on the devices it is already installed on. This game was the altered version of PUBG (PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds) which was a battle royal game, developed by Krafton. BGMI had over 100 million registered users in the country just after a year it was relaunched after PUBG was deemed illegal in India. 

In 2020, the Indian government banned twenty Chinese apps and it was on the list of banned apps because of its involvement with the Chinese game development firm Tencent Games. Those apps were banned due to security risk reasons. 

An NGO, PRAHAR, has requested the government to ban the Chinese gaming application BGMI in February 2020 and to enlist it in the fifty-four Chinese app list, stating its unavailability in the list is a “clear lapse in judgement on part of the Government”. 

Source: www.news18.com

RSS, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh confederate Swadeshi Jagran Manch, has also supported PRAHAR’s request and urged for an investigation on antecedents and Chinese influence on BGMI, according to a report by IANS. 

Google has officially announced that it has received an official order for the removal of BGMI from the India Government and Krafton confirmed the same. 

Google in a statement said, “On receipt of the order, following established process, we have notified the affected developer and have blocked access to the app that remained available on the Play Store in India.”

Source: www.91mobiles.com

Why It Is Banned?

Meanwhile, Krafton said, “we are clarifying how BGMI was removed from Google Play and will let you know once we get specific information.”

Source: www.91mobiles.com

While there is not any proper statement or reason given for its ban, #BGMI, and #BGMIban hashtags are trending on Twitter. It seems to have connected to the violent incidents happening. Recently, there was an incident where a 16-year-old boy shot and killed his mother only because of some argument over online games such as PUBG. The incident was under investigation. 

While some reports mentioned the reason as the same as PUBG Mobile, the government is distressed about the issues regarding data transmigration and its connection to the Chinese firms. The real reason will be soon disclosed by the government. 

Rajeev Chandrashekhar, Union Minister, also noted that banned apps such as PUBG, which were banned in India, are resurfacing in new forms targeting BGMI, as it was also launched as the latest version of PUBG Mobile. 

BGMI has been the most renowned app among Chinese apps that was rebranded and relaunched with similar features and managed to stay out of government eyes. Maybe because of its high popularity among gamers.   

Its developer Krafton seemed to have invested about 100 million U.S dollars for the development and relaunching of BGMI and an esports ecosystem over the past years in India. So, the ban of this game will be a big blow to it in India. It will also affect the gaming market in India. The firm recently declared surpassing 100 million registered android and Ios users. chief Executive officer of Krafton, Changhan Kim, said 

“India is an important market for Krafton. We are positive about the opportunities in the country and are committed to create a robust gaming ecosystem. Our focus is pivoted towards constantly elevating the mobile gaming experience for our growing community and invest in the flourishing start-up landscape here”.

Source: gadgets360.com